Lake Catholic volleyball team heading to state for sixth time

The Lake Catholic volleyball team won the Division II regional tournament in Stow on Nov. 4 with a win over Beaumont.
John Kampf — The News-Herald

Stow >> Sometimes, maybe it’s better if the stars don’t line up.

A year after a loaded Lake Catholic volleyball team couldn’t come home with a state championship, the Cougars are headed back to Fairborn with a team coaches and players alike feel weren’t given a shot to get much further than a district tournament match.

Led by precise passing and aggressive serving, Lake Catholic posted a 25-19 25-20, 27-29, 25-19 win over North Coast League rival Beaumont in the Division II regional final in Stow on Nov. 4.

The Cougars (15-11) advance to the state tournament for the sixth time under Coach Rich Severino, The Cougars face another NCL foe, Padua, in a 4 p.m. state semifinal on Nov. 10 at the Nutter Center on the campus of Wright State University.

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“Unbelievable,” said Severino, who might have set a new high-jump record when the final point went up for his team. “Last year I have this dream team and this year they’re all gone and we have a normal volleyball team. We’re like workers. No stars, and we’re back in the final four.”

After defeating Beaumont in five sets in two regular-season meetings, Lake Catholic was on the verge of a sweep in the third set, serving for match point twice.

When Beaumont (8-19) was called for a net violation on match point, the Cougars stormed the court in celebration.

“It’s so exciting,” said junior Ashley Browske, who had a match-high 25 kills. “No one believed we could do this. The fact we went 10-10 at the end of (the regular season) and to get back (to state) with this team is amazing.”

The Cougars got the job done thanks in part to precise passing, which allowed setters Annie Cvelbar and Katy Yopko to make perfect sets to the Cougars’ front line of hitters. Both Cvelbar and Yopko had 25 assists on the afternoon.

But the big key, both coaches agreed, was Lake Catholic taking advantage of a rotation situation in the fourth and final set.

Severino said Beaumont’s rotation, where Madison Kasper and Darby Leininger rotate out, is when his team needed to score.

A Leininger kill gave Beaumont a 17-12 lead in the fourth set. But Lake Catholic scored 13 of the next 15 points when the Blue Streaks were in that specific rotation.

“We get stuck in certain rotations and it’s tough to get out of,” Beaumont coach Pat Royer said. “We know each other so well, it’s very easy to game plan for each other. But on the other hand, you know what’s coming.

“If they get into system, they’re really tough to beat. We know what they’re going to run and we still can’t stop it - that’s a sign of a good team.”